Long Live the Queen
by Iwochii
Summary: The life of Chrysalis accounted for as we follow her journey to becoming the Queen of the Changeling Kingdom.
1. Prologue

Prologue

The Changeling Empire was once a thriving place to live in, hidden under the façade of any regular kingdom you would encounter. On the surface, ponies, pegasi, and unicorns lived their daily lives uninhibited by change, unknowing of what lay beneath. Those who even had a shred of doubt were sent away and replaced.

Replaced by what, you might ask? A Changeling, of course. The appearance, the voice, the attitude and personality, everything copied and represented in a false being. This was how it was done for centuries, before I was even born. Half of the empire we inhabited became Changelings, the other half the unsuspecting citizens. Those we replaced… what, you didn't think we killed them, did you? We simply erased their memories and sent them away. No use wasting food.

I'm not sure you have guessed by now, but my name is Chrysalis, Princess- no, _Queen_ of the Changeling Kingdom. I have surpassed my mother, Queen Papilionem, after her death three years ago. I never knew my father; a culture of the Changelings. Every changeling knew only one of their parents, be it their father after the mother abandoned them, or their mother after seducing one of the normal citizens. It was how we got on with life, never really having ties except to the royalty of the kingdom.

The Queen of the kingdom was my mother. She was by far the tallest Changeling I have ever met, and the one I looked up to the most. Her face, unlike most, was squarer than the other changelings, giving her an angled beauty. Her thin wings were violet with a pink sheen, her eyes a deep fuchsia color, and her mane was as flowing as blue-violet willow fronds. She was whom I got my features from; the same willowy mane and tail, the slight angles to my own face, and the length of my legs.

She ruled with an iron hoof, but held the compassion for the well-being of her subjects. She ensured that our people never went hungry, rationed food if she had to, and even cut her own meal so that her people would not go hungry. And it was up to me to withhold her legacy.


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter One

The day I was born was celebrated throughout the Kingdom; the Queen, at last, had an heir to the throne if she were to suddenly disappear. She reared me herself, and hired the occasional Nanny if she were to take a leave of absence. She was everything I wanted to be. Tall, sultry, willowy with a grace envied by swans.

Childhood, to me, was a time to be carefree. I danced in the streets, I played games throughout the halls of my expansive castle, and I hung out in the kitchen for sweet treats by the Chef. Love cake was my favorite.

I never really saw my mother eat, and she was so thin that sometimes, I thought she would break. But never had I seen her falter, and got the notion that maybe she doesn't need to eat, or eats elsewhere when she gets the chance. I began to think that maybe I didn't need to eat either, a thought that quickly came to end when I came down with sickness.

But Mother just shook her head with a gentle smile. "Child, eating is a necessity for all of life…" She murmured to me as I lay in bed. Her holed hoof gently brushed my forelock from my eyes. "Why were you not eating?"

"You never eat…" I whimpered. "I wanna be like you."

My quiet response was met with a gentle kiss on the cheek. "Of course I eat… Maybe I should start taking my supper with you." She started to rise to leave; quickly I held onto her hoof. This was met with another gentle smile. "Do you miss my company?" She watched my head bob up and down. "Then perhaps I will stay a while longer."

My mother was a kind Queen. Her compassion didn't stop at me; many a time I have watched as the people of her Kingdom, weary from hunger, came to her throne practically crawling to preserve what little strength they could possibly possess. They didn't even have the chance to say a single word; food was immediately brought out on the Queen's orders.

"I know there are more of you, hungry out on the streets." My mother would say. "Take this food and pass it equally among the hungry. If you are short, send for me again." And so it was done.

The village Changelings came so often, I began to wonder if there was no longer food to be had. But I was the first to notice, so I kept quiet unless I was wrong in my thoughts. Our own food was growing short from giving it out to the people. After another two weeks, I approached my mother.

She had been affected by the food shortage more than I had. Her willowy mane was dull and did not hold that sheen I so admired. She turned her level, dull eyes to me. "What is it, my dear Chrysalis?"

"Mother…" I began, hopping up onto her throne and making my way into her lap. Being a filly, I was awfully small and could have easily been pushed away, if Mother so wanted. But she did not. "You know how food is running low and stuff?"

"Yes, I do."

"Well…" I stammered. "What… what if the village Changelings are just taking our food and not trying to find their own?" I was almost afraid I was about to be slapped. But the blow never came.

"That is very smart of you, Chrysalis." Queen Papilionem spoke after a few minutes, as if she hadn't thought of this notion before. "You are very conscious of the Kingdom." Her hoof stroked my mane. "You will be a good Queen and lead this Kingdom to greatness."

The next day, two of the village Changelings came again, to ask for food. Queen Papilionem nodded. "Perhaps, today, I will walk the food to you and see for myself how depleted you are of food, if you say you truly are."

This struck a chord of panic in them.

"Oh, no, you needn't bother with us…" The female stuttered.

"We are capable of doing it ourselves." The male added.

"Nonsense," My mother gave her friendliest smile, which often doubles as the most intimidating. "It is a Queen's duty to see to her people, yes?" After listening to their muttered comments, her smile faded away and a stern look plastered itself onto her face. "Or, is it a Queen's duty to cut her own food for her own family to feed her people as they grow fat and lazy because of their Queen's foolishness?"

The village Changelings froze. They were in for it. Silence filled the throne room for a good measure of time, and for all I know it could have been merely thirty seconds before Queen Papilionem spoke again, "I will provide in times of need. But not to a lazy kingdom. You are dismissed."

That was the first night in a long time that I was able to have a full belly. The entire castle ate well, even my mother in her thin grace ate three platefuls of Roasted Distrust, Minced Anger, and a creamy soup of Happiness. Oh, you think those treats have deeper meanings? Absolutely not; Changelings feed on emotions, silly. The Changelings spread throughout the Kingdom with the normal ponies collect the emotions from the unicorns, pegasi, and earth ponies and bring them back to our Kingdom deep underneath the surface. Our bakers and cooks create new recipes or twists to old ones. That's how they made Love Cake, our dessert that night.

The best thing about emotional food is it never goes bad.


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

Years have passed since that incidence with the food shortage. Food has gotten no shorter, but it has not replenished either. By now, I've reached my thirteenth year, and am beginning to mature into the mare I must become if I am to rule after my mother. On this day, a sunny autumn afternoon, my mother is taking me into town for my first Gathering. And on this trip, she was to break tradition.

I would see my father for the first time in my thirteen years of living.

I was up before the house servants; rather, I never went to sleep in the first place. Excitement, nervousness, anxiety. They would make lovely dishes if I weren't the one feeling these emotions ricocheting inside my chest. But alas, it was bound to happen when the clock struck noon.

And so it did. Noon, we left for the town. Noon, my mother and I transformed our bodies into the appearance of normal ponies. Her, Star Struck and I, Butterfly Flitter. Her, a gorgeous silver mare with a mane the color of the sky and eyes as clear as a lake. Me, an autumn orange with a mane the shade of falling leaves. Our goal was to collect the best emotion of all; love.

"Now remember, Chrysalis," Papilionem said to me, her voice masked by her appearance's voice. "Emotional Harvest is a difficult thing. I just want you to watch today. And then I'll take you out again tomorrow." She smiled and patted my head. "But I trust you will learn a lot today."

"Yes, mother."

"And Chrys." She wrapped one leg around my shoulders. "You'll know him when you see him." My heart fluttered in my chest. I nodded as her leg released me and we started forward.

I had never seen regular ponies before. They came in so many colors, some with wings, some with horns, and some had neither. I saw blue ones and red ones and green ones and orange ones, with manes that matched and mismatched their coats. They were everywhere; in the skies, on the streets, in the windows, and in the shops. The smells of things cooking wafted down the streets; apple pies, pastries, among other treats that did not at all smell appetizing.

"These ponies are not like us, Chrysalis." My mouth must have been agape, for my mother looked down at me with brief amusement. "They don't need to feed on emotions to survive. Just food without our nutrient source is enough for them." I shook my head in disgust as my mother smiled. "It just leaves more emotion for us."

A whistle caught our attention. A couple of stallions yards away had been watching us with appraising eyes. My mother smirked and whispered, "Watch closely." She approached them, her hips swaying in a way I had never seen them sway before. I could not see her face, but I could only imagine her eyes were half-lidded from the way the stallions fidgeted. She twirled around them, a sly look on her face. One by one, the stallions' eyes went from their usual color to the vibrant violet of my mother's magic. She was collecting their emotions. And just like that, the color was gone, the stallions drained and in a heap on the ground.

"We must move on. They'll wake soon." Star Struck trotted her way over to me and ushered me forward, more of a hop in her step than before. We paused in a café a few blocks away, and she showed me the beaker with the emotion swirling within it. "This is what we collected." It glowed and pulsed a strong pink. "Lust. Not as strong as love, but still pretty good." She giggled. "Those colts were full of it for me… Makes an old mare like me feel young."

"You're not old, mother." I had no idea what lust was. Something weaker than love, but possibly stronger than "like"? "You're still young and beautiful."

"As are you, my moon lily," She stroked my head. "But there are many types of emotion to harvest. Hatred, sorrow, fear… Those are the easy ones. They bring you down the fastest. The most delicious emotions are the hardest to achieve." She gestured her hoof to a couple of ponies in a nearby booth. "What do you see?"

I squinted at them. "Two ponies mashing their faces together."

She suppressed a laugh. "That's love, my dear. They're kissing."

"It looks gross."

"Perhaps it is…" Her sudden change to wistfulness brought my attention back to her. "But perhaps you are still young and inexperienced." But quick as it came it was gone. She smiled at me. "You will learn one day, and not from me." She looked up as the bell over the entrance rang. She gave another wistful smile. "And there he is…"

A stallion had walked in, older with lines in his face. His coat was nothing special, just a dim sky blue, but his mane… It was so like my own that I gasped. I knew it was him. A gentle hoof on my shoulder was the only thing keeping me from launching from my seat and hugging him. My mother shook her head, and we both watched on as he approached the counter, got his coffee, turned, and walked right back out the door, just like that.

We returned back to our castle that night, shedding our appearances like a snake sheds its skin. I don't know how to feel about today… I did learn a lot, about emotions, different actions that can incur them… who my father was…

I probably won't ever see him again. It's probably for the best.

For the next year, my mother would take me out, every four days, to harvest emotions. I even collected my own, after the next couple of months. I got a vial of fear, a pitcher of sorrow, a cup of hate, and my best accomplishment, a dash of lust. My mother doesn't see my collection of lust as much of an accomplishment though. But nonetheless, the days came and went, my harvesting went on, my lessons continued while I was home, my mother did her Queenly duties, and food stabilized for the empire. We even had some growth.

But then one day, my mother and I went out. We were in the town, sitting at the fountain, playing cards as we scouted for our next vessel. It was a pretty day; sunny, with warmth in the wind.

My mother saw my father.

My father saw her too.

The tension was so thick in the air, I could taste the fear and nervous anger bubbling. I never thought I would see my father like that, but then again, I never thought I would see my father at all. In an instant I was shoved into the fountain as my mother took a protective stance.

Magic bubbled at my father's horn. "Star Struck…"

"Lucky Clover…" She said calmly. "What is it you want from me now?"

"I want to know the truth…" I peered over the rim of the fountain. My father was inches from Papilionem. "Are you really… one of _them_?" I could only assume by "them," he meant the Changelings. His eyes flickered from her to me, and then back to her. "Is she mine?"

"She is yours…" My mother backed up and pushed my head back down. "But you must leave her alone."

A crowd was beginning to gather in the streets and in the square. This was bad. This was so bad. Nervous energy churned in my stomach. I whimpered, "Mom, I wanna go home…"

"We will, my moon lily…"

The guards began to disperse amongst the crowd. One approached my mother and Lucky Clover. "Is this stallion bothering you, miss?" He directed to her, his eyes flickering between the two.

"Yes-"

"Don't believe her! She's a changeling!"

The stunned crowd broke into whispers of shock. "Changeling?" "How many?" "Are both of the mares changelings?" "How does he know?" The guards looked to one another and did their best to calm and send away the crowd. My mother stood planted, not showing anything to give her identity away.

"Is this true, ma'am?" The guard eyed Papilionem.

"Of course not."

"More lies!" Lucky Clover yelled to the shuffling crowd. "She's lying to you! She told me, fourteen years ago! And then she _left_! And conceived _her_!" Eyes fell on me. The facts were there. My mother's confidence was breaking. I shook terribly, more from the fear of being caught than the cold water at my hooves.

I felt my illusionary skin slipping. I was too afraid. I took deep breaths, trying to calm myself. My mother looked down, then back up at the crowd. And just like that, there she stood, in all of her Changeling glory. Her silky violet wings caught the light and fully showed the pink webbings within. "That's right…" She hissed, her fangs bared at the crowd of trembling ponies. "I _am _a changeling! And you will leave my daughter alone!" She lashed out at Lucky Clover and the guards. I squeaked as a few ponies made a grab for me, only to realize they, too, were changelings.

One by one, illusionary skins were shed. Roughly half of the entire crowd had been changelings. They rose up one by one to defend their Queen, and me. I could only glimpse over the backs of my protectors as they led me away, that my mother had fallen.


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

I waited.

And waited.

And waited.

Hours stacked until they became days. My mother had not returned yet, and not a single changeling had left our Kingdom below the city. Fear lay too heavy in our hearts for our Queen to risk leaving and revealing the entire empire. Much of the stress had fallen onto my shoulders, now being the only royal in the entire Kingdom.

Mother Papilionem had never taught me what it took to lead a Kingdom, but I had seen her do it. So I would sit on the throne, day in, day out, offering condolences, dealing with matters I had never been taught to deal with. Over time, it became easier as I grew bigger, older, stronger. My mother never returned; I don't think she ever will.

At last, it was the day I turned eighteen, four years after that fateful day. I was presented my crown, the throne in my name instead of the late Queen's. The changelings respected me, maybe even more than they had Papilionem. I wasn't sure whether to feel proud of that fact or despise my people for their lack of respect towards their late Queen. There wasn't any celebration; it was the acceptance that my mother wouldn't be returning, and the dire situation we were in food-wise.

"My people," I addressed them from my seat on the throne. "I understand our situation is someplace less than appealing. But for it to get any better, we need to work for it. I will be organizing a party to make our first Harvest in four years. No longer will we depend on shipments of emotions from other Changeling empires, or ration what emotions we have left. Tomorrow, we will Harvest for ourselves!" A great cheer erupted from the crowd. "Do I have any volunteers?" A number of changelings stepped forward, almost two thirds of the five hundred changelings under my command. "Wonderful! We will have our storage replenished in no time! We will split our groups over the land of Equestria!" Another cheer echoed in the Great Hall. "You who have not stepped forward, you are dismissed."

I split my three hundred changelings into three groups; Group A will go out west to Appleloosa, and roam the city gathering what emotions they can. The same will be done for Group B, whom will be traveling to the Ford in the North. And at last, group C will be traveling to Canterlot. "Be careful and witty, my subjects." I advised as they prepped for their flights. "Do not take unnecessary risks. If you notice a pony is following you, divert its course and lose it. And please, stay safe. We are a small nation, and we cannot bear to lose three hundred of its people." I embraced each one of the three hundred, something I had never seen my mother do but felt it necessary. And at last, they flew off under the cover of night.

I went to bed that night feeling confident all would be alright. We would be getting more food, and new harvesting grounds. As long as my people were careful, all would be alright.

The first group from the Ford returned first. Their satchels were full of emotions; laughter caught in glistening yellow bottles, sorrow in somber blue flasks. The most abundant emotions were that of vivid, passionate love and raging anger. "They drink a lot of Fire-Water in the Ford." One changeling reported. She was one of the prettiest I had seen, and I did not doubt her pony transformation was just as beautiful. And I believed her when she told me she might be expecting a youngling.

Three hours later came the next group from Appleloosa. The results were just as great as from the Ford group. Again, anger and love prevailed, but with a large amount of happiness too. Three mare changelings came to me expecting foals to come to them soon. I expected it, but at the same time I was surprised there weren't more. I could only guess that others would be hiding that fact out of embarrassment. The day eventually ended with not a sign from the Canterlot group. Nervous energy gnawed at my heart as I paced the Great Hall, awaiting the final group's return. What if they didn't? I didn't want to think of the answer.

It was midway through the next day when at last they did. They carried satchels of only one emotion; rage. They looked roughed up, scratches and gashes marking their bodies. Some of their numbers were missing; one hundred had left, but only eighty three had returned. No mare returned with promises of new changelings to come; in fact, they had feared if they had stayed longer, there would have been less of them to return.

"What occurred in Canterlot?" My question fell to the stallion changeling that limped up to my throne. "Surely you were careful?"

"Yes, your highness…" He murmured, sitting before me. He had not the strength to remain standing. "But they had heard of our coming… somehow. I am not sure." He looked up to me with a depression so strong, I could have harvested it. "We were there only an hour before we were discovered, and then we were attacked…"

He relayed his account of the situation; they had done their best to protect the mares as they escaped, but lost one. The other sixteen they had left were all stallions, fighting valiantly so they could escape. I shook my head and stroked the stallion's mane. "We will survive… rise. We have collected emotion enough to have a feast tonight in celebration. I shall see to it that Canterlot is dealt with…" I stood and wandered from the throne room, deep in thought.

_They will be expecting our next visit… _I paced the hallway, my hoofsteps the only echoing sound. _There must be some way to sneak in… _I sighed and returned to my bedchamber. "No matter, I will devise a plan some way…"


End file.
